Scheming Megumi Kato

As the credits rolled for "The 108-Headed Shark," which ended with the male lead marrying the shark and creating a harmonious ecosystem between humans and sharks, Izumi Kotomi sat in her seat, utterly stunned.

The movie had taken a wild turn, leaving Kotomi, who aspired to be the world's freest creator, completely bewildered. Just when she thought it couldn't get any crazier, the post-credits scene hinted at a sequel by showing the 108-headed shark having an affair with a giant great white shark, setting the stage for "The 209-Headed Shark."

"Wow, I didn't expect shark movies in this world to get so wild!" Kotomi thought, still reeling from the two-hour spectacle.

As the theater lights came up, Megumi Kato stood up and said to the dazed Kotomi, "It's getting late... Kotomi-san, shall we go get something to eat?"

Kotomi snapped out of her stupor, nodded, and left her seat, ready to find a restaurant with Megumi.

"That plot really caught me off guard, but the scenes of the shark wreaking havoc on the city were pretty cool," Kotomi said, rubbing her eyes. She had spent the entire two hours focused on the shark special effects.

"I'm kind of looking forward to 'The 209-Headed Shark' now," Megumi said with a smile.

"It might take a few years before it's out."

Hearing this, Megumi asked with a hint of something deeper, "So~ in a few years, will you still want to come watch it with me, Kotomi-san?"

"Of course I will," Kotomi replied without hesitation.

With Kotomi's enthusiastic response, Megumi's smile grew even warmer.

As they left the cinema, the night had fully descended.

Luckily, Kotomi had mentioned to her parents that she might be home late tonight.

Her parents were initially a bit worried about their precious daughter being out so late, fearing she might be kidnapped by some bad people. But once they heard she would be with Megumi Kato, they relented.

Even though they hadn't met Megumi in person, the Izumi couple had a favorable impression of her and felt more at ease knowing their daughter was in good company.

"My parents were a bit worried about me staying out this late, but when I told them I was with you, they were okay with it," Kotomi said, recalling the conversation with her parents.

Upon hearing this, Megumi couldn't help but chuckle and replied, "Oh, really? I'll have to properly thank Izumi-san and his wife for their trust. I'm grateful they're willing to entrust their daughter to me."

Something about the way Megumi said that felt a bit... strange to Kotomi.

"My mom said you're welcome to visit anytime," Kotomi added.

"I'll be sure to visit when I get the chance," Megumi responded with a cheerful smile.

Dinner was at a restaurant with a distinct Hogwarts magic academy theme. Although the fried rice had a bit too much green onion for Kotomi's taste, the dumpling hotpot was delicious. There were fifty dumplings in the pot, and Kotomi ended up eating nearly thirty by herself.

They also had butterbeer.

However, since they were both underage, they couldn't drink alcohol. The chef kindly replaced their butterbeer with frothy cream soda instead.

Megumi, however, didn't eat much. She spent most of the time subtly admiring Kotomi's happy expression as she ate, occasionally taking a small bite herself.

It was as if Megumi wasn't interested in the food on the table, but rather in the little penguin sitting across from her.

This little penguin's name was Izumi Kotomi.

For some reason, Megumi was eating very slowly tonight, almost as if she were deliberately dragging things out. Kotomi didn't think much of it, assuming that Megumi simply wasn't very hungry.

By the time they finished dinner, nearly two hours had passed.

When Kotomi noticed the time on the clock, she realized that they had taken way too long!

"Oh no! It's so late already!" Kotomi exclaimed, grabbing Megumi's attention. The last train was about to leave!

"Oh dear, I didn't notice the time either. We should hurry, Kotomi-san," Megumi said, feigning a sudden panic even though she had been carefully watching the time all along.

"I'll go pay the bill," Kotomi said as she quickly walked to the front desk. Before dinner, they had agreed that she would cover this meal, and Megumi had readily agreed.

As Kotomi paid, Megumi glanced one last time at the time on her phone, then subtly left her phone on her chair, pushing it back as she stood up.

The two of them then hurried out of the restaurant and headed for the train station, alternating between walking and running. They were just in time—only two minutes remained before the last train to Chiba would depart.

With only one minute left, Megumi suddenly started frantically searching through her handbag, her movements exaggerated enough for Kotomi to immediately notice.

"Kato-san, what are you looking for?" Kotomi asked.

"My phone… My phone's gone... I could have sworn I put it in my bag, but it's not here!" Megumi said, feigning anxiety as she searched her bag, a fine sheen of sweat appearing on her forehead. Her deep, beautiful eyes filled with a misty layer of tears, giving her a pitiful, anxious look that tugged at the heartstrings.

The last train was about to arrive, but Megumi's phone had gone missing at the worst possible time.

Seeing Megumi in such a state, Kotomi knew she had never seen her friend so distressed before.

In an instant, Kotomi made up her mind.

Grabbing Megumi's hand, she said earnestly, "Let's go back and look for it. Where did you last see your phone?"

"It was at the restaurant where we had dinner… but the last train will be here in less than a minute."

"The most important thing right now is finding your phone, not the last train! Let's go back and look for it. If we don't hurry, the restaurant might close," Kotomi said decisively, holding Megumi's hand tightly and pulling her away from the station. They ran through the night back toward the magical-themed restaurant.

When they returned to the restaurant, it was almost closing time. The server who greeted them stepped forward and politely reminded them, "I'm sorry, but we're about to close for the night. Could you please come back tomorrow?"

"Oh no, we're not here to eat. I think we accidentally left a phone here earlier. We'll just look around quickly and be on our way," Kotomi explained.

Realizing they weren't here to dine, the server nodded and stepped aside to let them into the dining area.

Back at their table, Megumi pretended to search for a moment before her peripheral vision "accidentally" spotted her phone in a corner, exactly where she had "forgotten" it.

By then, the last train had already departed.

Megumi smiled softly, dimples forming, as she picked up her phone and pretended to be overjoyed. "Thank goodness! I found it! Kotomi-san, let's hurry back—maybe we can still catch the train."

"Good thing you found it," Kotomi said, relieved.

But when they returned to the station, the last train to Chiba had already left.

The station was empty and quiet, with hardly anyone around, only the sound of the departure announcement echoing through the space.

Megumi bit her lip, looking a bit guilty, and said, "Kotomi-san, it seems like we missed the last train..."